Shalimar - Cambridge, MA

Recently, I had to use up a groupon for $40 with of food and groceries at Shalimar, an Indian grocery store in Cambridge, MA. The last time I went there was over 5 years ago and I only bought a package of cardamom pods then. The store is actually quite impressive for its small size. Their spice selection includes quite a lot of different selections that you might not be able to find elsewhere. In addition to regular cardamom pods, they actually have dark cardamom pods, which smell a little smokey, so I'm guessing they're roasted. Another rare spice is dry mango ("Amchur") power, for $1.99 a box. I bought some but still not sure what I'm going to do with it! The others are spices, such as turmeric, coriander, fennel, cumin, etc., that you would find in a curry or other Indian dish.

It actually took me quite a while to choose $40 worth of goods for my groupon! I was tempted to get the snacks but I'm trying to shed a few pounds this summer and have too many Asian snack cakes in the house right now. So, most of my basket was filled with spices. I took pictures of everything I bought, so you can see what kinds of things Shalimar carries.

Sweets

Cadbury hot chocolate

Sweet almond treats

Indian Bread

Boil-in-the-bag meals
These are very good, by the way. I used to eat Japanese curry like this when I taught in Japan in the mid-1990's. These are very convenient products and not too expensive.

Boil-in-the-bag Palak Paneer

Boil-in-the-bag Korma

Spices

This is probably the main reason I would return to this store. Their selection is simply amazing (at least to a non-Indian). I'm sure there are spice shops in India that carry more but in the Boston area, you're not going to find this kind of selection in one place. One of the stores at haymarket has a pretty big selection but Shalimar might actually have more. I bought paprika, cumin seed, turmeric, and curry powder. Since the spices in bags have the Shalimar named on them, I'm guessing that they buy those in bulk and package them. I bet they're fresher too.

Turmeric, Curry Powder, Dried Mango Powder

Cumin seed and Paprika

Chicken Tikka spice

Rice

Arborio rice is probably not the most popular type of rice in India. I was actually surprised to find it at this store but got it because I wanted some sticky rice. They also carry basmati and other types of non-sticky rice, which are more typical in Indian cuisine.

Overall, this store has very reasonably priced items that you probably can't find elsewhere. If you're new to the Boston area or just want to add to your spice collection, check this place out! Also, it's one of the only places that carry Cadbury's hot chocolate powder. The Indian breads are also very good.

Ghazal Indian Restaurant - Review

Ghazal is a relatively recent addition to the row of restaurants on Centre Street in Jamaica Plain. They might not have the following of Bukhara but that's just because people just don't know about Ghazal yet. All of my room mates who have tried Ghazal love it and either go to Ghazal more or at least just as often as they go to Bukhara. You have the option of dining in or ordering takeout or delivery (on the phone or via Seamless web). (By the way, if you use the Seamless web link here, you can get a $5 discount on your first order, if you're new to the site.) It's one of the few places that don't charge a delivery fee on top of the tip. I like that.

The fact that you can choose to have your food as hot or mild as you like is a great thing. If you think you can take it, the nice chefs at Ghazal will make your meal "Indian hot," which means that it is way hotter than any American food you've ever had. Seriously. Personally, I'm too much of a wimp for that sort of thing. Medium is about as hot as I'll go.

Ok, so what do you order when there are so many choices on the menu? If I'm getting delivery, I like to get the Special Dinner for one. If you're eating with someone, there's also a dinner for two (which is probably enough food for 3 or 4). For less than $25 per person, you will get more than enough food for one meal, unless you're a football player, in which case it will be just enough (see picture below). It includes a samosa, soup, rice, naan bread, crispy things (sorry, I don't know what they were but they were really tasty), a curry dish of your choice, rice pudding (aka "kheer"), and coffee or tea. Oh yeah, you also get 3 sauces: a green one, a brownish one, and a reddish-orange one with onions. The green one is spicy and minty, the brownish one is sweet, and the reddish-orange one is spicy with oniony goodness.

So, how was it? I enjoyed all of it except for the samosa, which was ok but nothing to write home about. Perhaps it would have been better straight out of the fryer. Next time, I'll put it in the toaster oven for a minute before eating it. All of the dishes were nicely seasoned and balanced. The curry dish I chose was the lamb and spinach one (saag?). The fact that they give you rice, crispy things, and naan is great because you can have different dipping instruments for your curry (and soup). That just makes eating Indian food fun! The mulligatawny soup was flavorful and complemented the curry and samosa. For desert, the rice pudding (aka "kheer") has some cardamom in it, which adds a nice flavor to it. After a big meal, the rice pudding was perfect because it was light. The coffee came in a deli container and it was what it was. All in all, it was a really good Indian meal and I would definitely order it again for delivery or take-out.

Meal for one - enough for at least 2 meals!

Rice pudding "kheer" - flavored with cardamom - Perfect ending to a big meal.